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1. Check your email when you are the most alert and have time to focus: This varies from person to person, so find the time that is best for you.
2. Utilize automatic email filters: To assist in separating trusted messages from the bad. These filters don’t guarantee that everything delivered to your inbox is safe but should help in sorting which emails are valid.
3. Be very selective to whom and to which sites you disclose your information.

When going through your inbox, keep the following in mind:

1. If you don’t know the email sender, the message should usually be deleted.
2. Ensure the sender’s email is not spoofed. This can be done by clicking ‘Reply To’ and checking what email address is in the ‘To’ field. Does it match the email address that it came from? If not, the email is fraudulent.
3. If you know the sender but were not expecting any correspondence from them, validate that the email was intended for you. You can do this by confirming with the sender through an alternative communication channel (text, phone call).
4. Never click suspicious links or give your personal information until you confirm it’s a legitimate source.

Depending on the amount of email you receive, it may seem like an overwhelming task to monitor each message for potential fraud. Just remember, all it takes is one moment of oversight and you will be spending more time and energy trying to repair the damage that was done.